Love Found Me When I Wasn’t Looking (episode 14)

Daniel’s POV

The decision didn’t come with noise.

It came quietly, one evening, as I watched Victoria marking her notes beside me, her face calm but tired. I realized then that love wasn’t just about feeling it was about direction.

And mine needed to change.

“Victoria,” I said softly.

She looked up immediately. “You’re thinking again.”

I smiled faintly. “That obvious?”

She closed her book. “What’s on your mind?”

I took a deep breath. “I need to tell you something about my past. About why I’m here… and not in Abuja.”

Her eyes softened. “I’m listening.”

I leaned back, staring at the ceiling for a moment before finding the courage.

“My father is a businessman,” I began. “A very successful one. He owns a logistics and supply company in Abuja. Big contracts. Big money.”

Her brows lifted slightly. “You never told me that.”

“I didn’t want it to define me,” I said. “Or confuse you.”

I turned to look at her. “After university, he wanted me to join the business full-time. Not just work there inherit it. But there was a condition.”

She shifted closer. “What condition?”

“He wanted me to marry into a particular family. A daughter of one of his business partners. It wasn’t about love. It was strategy.”

Victoria inhaled sharply. “Daniel…”

“I couldn’t do it,” I continued. “I tried to explain. I told him I wanted my own life, my own choices. He said I was being ungrateful. That I didn’t understand how the world works.”

I laughed quietly, without humor. “Maybe he was right. Or maybe I just didn’t want to sell my future.”

“So you left,” she said.

“I walked away,” I corrected. “From the business. From the money. From Abuja.”

Her hand found mine. “And you became a teacher.”

“Yes,” I said simply. “Because teaching made sense to me. It felt honest. I wanted to build something that was mine.”

I paused, then added, “But now… I think it’s time I face him again.”

She stiffened. “Face your father?”

“Yes,” I said. “Not to beg. Not to surrender. But to renegotiate my life.”

I sat up straighter, conviction settling in. “I’m not going back to marry for business. But I can return to the company on my own terms. Learn. Build skills. Create income. Maybe even invest in something separate.”

Victoria studied my face. “Are you sure you’re ready for that?”

“I’m ready because of you,” I admitted. “I love teaching but I also want to be a man who can stand in front of your mother without shame.”

Her eyes glistened.

“You don’t have to prove yourself to anyone,” she said softly.

“I know,” I replied. “But I want to.”

There was silence for a moment.

Then she asked, quietly, “Does going back mean… leaving?”

“For a while,” I said honestly. “But not leaving us

Her grip on my hand tightened.

“I won’t marry for money,” I said firmly. “I won’t trade my heart. But I won’t let pride keep me poor either.”

That made her smile through her tears.

“I’m proud of you,” she whispered.

I pulled her into my arms, holding her close.

For years, I had run from my father’s world because it tried to control me.

Now, I was choosing to step back into it not as a son obeying orders, but as a man rewriting them.

And for the first time, Abuja didn’t feel like a threat.

It felt like a tool.

One I would use to build a future where love and stability could stand side by side  

continue reading Episode 15